Transport giant FirstGroup has appointed the former chief of rival Arriva as its new chairman as the group looks to move on from its spat with activist investor Coast Capital.

David Martin starts with immediate effect and replaces Wolfhart Hauser, who resigned in June.

Senior independent director David Robbie had since been serving as interim chairman.

Aberdeen-based FirstGroup - which runs Great Western Railway, South Western Railway (SWR) and
TransPennine Express - saw off Coast's attempt, with shareholders overwhelmingly voting against its plans to install six of their own replacement executives.

READ MORE: FirstGroup fends off directors’ pay revolt at AGM

But Mr Hauser resigned at the group's annual shareholder meeting in July, saying it was "now time for me to move on".

Mr Martin was chief executive of transport rival Arriva for 10 years and has a career in the transport industry dating back to 1986.

He said: "I am pleased to be joining FirstGroup at a key point in its development.

"Undoubtedly there are challenges which we must overcome, but I am confident in the opportunity that exists to unlock the considerable value within the group."

He is currently senior independent director at waste management group Biffa, where he also served as interim chairman for six months.

READ MORE: FirstGroup to take over west coast main line

Mr Robbie said: "Having followed a rigorous and formal process, and considered the views of our shareholders, we have secured an extremely experienced, high-calibre and independent candidate with an extensive track record in surface transportation."

He added Mr Martin has "significant experience in business turnaround and performance improvement".

FirstGroup has suffered a tough year so far, recently also seeing a significant shareholder vote against pay plans for top bosses at its annual general meeting.

Almost a quarter of votes cast by shareholders were against approving the directors' remuneration report, with 23.68% in opposition.

FirstGroup is in the midst of a revamp, saying earlier this year it would put its US Greyhound bus business up for sale and look at potentially selling its UK bus division too.

The announcement came after intense pressure from Coast, which had been pressing for a break-up of the group.

Coast, which holds a 9.8% stake in FirstGroup, had argued that the transport firm's share price was being held back by less profitable businesses, which was offsetting the stronger First Student unit.

But on Wednesday, FirstGroup delivered some cheer for investors when it announced that, along with Italian firm Trenitalia, it was set to take over the running of the West Coast mainline train route, connecting London Euston to Glasgow Central, from December.

Ladbrokes owner GVC pushed its profit forecasts higher as its UK high street stores performed better than expected despite the clampdown on fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs).

The gambling giant said its retail business "outperformed" expectations, while "strong trading" in its online arm helped to mitigate cost rises elsewhere in the business.

READ MORE: Ladbrokes betting shop sales down 19%

However, it said it still expects to close 900 stores over the next two years and will see annual retail earnings take a £137.5 million hit as a result of FOBT changes.

The FTSE 250 company, which also runs betting firm Coral, saw underlying pre-tax profits rise 30% to £212.1 million over the first half of 2019.

However, GVC saw reported pre-tax profits for the period to June almost evaporate, falling to £2.1 million from £113.8 million a year earlier, after it was hit by £183 million in one-off costs.

GVC said its earnings for the full year are set to be £10 million higher than previously forecast, as the company coped better than expected with the introduction of reduced FOBT stakes.

In April, the Government introduced a £2 limit on the betting terminals, down from £100, in a bid to tackle problem gamblers.

READ MORE: Easyjet vows to expand Scottish routes after Glasgow jobs boost

Earlier this year, GVC said that as many as 900 of its stores could close as a result of the new legislation, putting 5,000 jobs at risk.

Electricity supplier URE Energy has been stripped of its licence by regulator Ofgem after failing to pay into a fund when it did not source enough renewable energy.

Under the Government's Renewables Obligation scheme, suppliers, such as URE, who do not source the required proportion of electricity from renewable sources have to pay into a buy-out fund administered by Ofgem.

The watchdog said URE failed to pay into the buy-out fund by the August 31 deadline last year or the late payment deadline of October 31.

It also failed to make the final order payment of £209,014, which has led Ofgem to withdraw its licence.

Suppliers have until August 31 to meet their 2018-19 renewables obligations, or can pay the amount owed plus interest by the late payment deadline of October 31.